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Photo gallery Friendsgiving is all about the friends — and food

November 27, 2024

Students gathered to eat and socialize at a Student Friendsgiving meal at Tripp Commons in Memorial Union on Nov. 19. They feasted on favorites like sliced turkey, butternut squash lasagna, sage stuffing and mashed potatoes and gravy, followed by pecan and pumpkin pie. Participants played trivia and even made cards for UW–Madison students staying in town for the Thanksgiving holiday.

People sitting around a table eat and talk.

As is typical at Friendsgiving celebrations, there was a wide variety of food, from traditional turkey to butternut squash lasagna, in order to meet the variety of tastes. Photo by Xiaomeng Shen/UW–Madison

People sitting around a table eat and talk.

Friendsgiving is a lot like Thanksgiving, except instead of your aunts and uncles, you share food with your friends, including newly made friends. Photo by Xiaomeng Shen/UW–Madison

A man addresses a ballroom full of people.

Shantanu Chaudhuri hosts the Wisconsin Union’s Friendsgiving Event at Tripp Commons. Photo by Xiaomeng Shen/UW–Madison

People sitting around a table eat and talk.

Friendsgiving tends to be more casual and unofficial than Thanksgiving. Photo by Xiaomeng Shen/UW–Madison

People sitting around a table eat and talk.

Friendsgiving celebrations have taken off in the last decade or so, as some people found that informal gatherings with friends were a fun way to mark Thanksgiving. Photo by Xiaomeng Shen/UW–Madison

People sitting around a table eat and talk.

The Friendsgiving event at Memorial Union was sold out, as people jumped at the chance to enjoy good food and socialize. Photo by Xiaomeng Shen/UW–Madison

People sitting around a table eat and talk.

Participants tried their hand at answering trivia questions. Photo by Xiaomeng Shen/UW–Madison

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